“The Ku Klux Government”: Vigilantism, lynching, and the repression of the IWW
Submitted by wojtek on Feb 28 2013 00:49
Michael Cohen's journal article on the extra-parliamentary repression of the IWW that ran parallel to that of the state at the beginning of the twentieth century.
Cohen, Michael. Journal for the Study of Radicalism 1. 1 (2006): 31-56.
The 1918 treaty of Brest-Litovsk: curbing the revolution - Guy Sabatier
Submitted by Alias Recluse on Jan 24 2013 00:19
A detailed historical account and political analysis of the treaty that marked the official conclusion of the First World War on the Eastern Front, in which the author stridently advocates the position of the “left communists” who opposed the treaty and instead called for international revolutionary war, with extensive discussion of the connection between the opposing views on this question in the Bolshevik Party and crucial domestic controversies concerning revolutionary social organization and economic policy.
A short history of the police strikes of 1918-1919
Submitted by Steven. on Jan 20 2013 15:19
Ken Weller of Solidarity's brief history of the two strikes of London police officers during and after World War I. Libcom does not support strikes of police officers as such but reproduce this text as an important bit of the mass upheavals of the time.
The police had a rough time during the War. Added to the already existing draconian discipline there was a massive amount of unpaid overtime and cancellation of leave. At the same time their wages had lagged far behind inflation - by 1918, police constables with 20 years' service were receiving less wages than the average rate for unskilled labourers before overtime.
Anarchists against World War One: Two little known events- Abertillery and Stockport
Submitted by Battlescarred on Jan 14 2013 15:35
A short account of little known episodes in the history of anarchist opposition to World War One
There have now been a reasonable number of publications on British anarchist opposition to World War One- the trailblazing and well-documented book on opposition in North London by Ken Weller, the relevant chapter in John Quail’s book on British anarchism, etc. However, much wore investigation needs to be done.
Socialist cross of honor: markings of a working class counter-culture
Submitted by kropotcorn on Dec 22 2012 20:37
Short article on the Socialist Cross of Honor, a medal produced by the New Zealand Socialist Party in 1911. The now rare medal was given to anti-militarists jailed for resisting conscription, and played a pivotal role in fostering a radical working class counter-culture. Reproduced from LHP Newsletter 55.
In July 1911 William Cornish Jnr, a young conscientious objector from Brooklyn, Wellington, stood before Magistrate Riddell on charges of refusing to register under the Defence Act of 1909.
The London transport women workers' strike, 1918 - Ken Weller
Submitted by Steven. on Dec 19 2012 19:36
A short history of the partially successful wildcat strike of women workers in London's public transport network during World War I for a war bonus payment and equal pay with men.
As World War I progressed, thousands of jobs normally done by men were taken over by women, and nowhere was this process more marked than in public transport.
'Don't be a soldier!' The radical anti-war movement in north London 1914-1918 - Ken Weller
Submitted by Steven. on Dec 18 2012 12:07
Ken Weller of Solidarity's excellent and detailed historical account of working class opposition to World War I in North London, which offers a snapshot of the anti-war movement nationally.
Digitised by libcom.org, December 2012. Text version to be completed shortly.
The Lusitania Riots of May 1915: A personal account - Pat O'Mara
Submitted by wojtek on Mar 31 2012 06:27
Pat O'Mara's personal account of the anti-German Lusitania riots of May 1915 which broke out in Liverpool, taken from his autobiography The Autobiography of a Liverpool Slummy. This account is reproduced for historical record, indeed it should be taken as a given that Libcom do not agree with the nationalistic riots nor the imperialist 'Great' War.
It was five o'clock one evening, and I was watching the home-coming dockers when a newsboy came racing down from Park Lane, yelling: "Sinking of the Lusitania!" The men stopped short; women peered from doorways. I joined one anxious group, poring over the fatal news. It was right - the 'Lusy', the fine boat I had left Joe and Harold aboard not two months ago, had been torpedoed!
Cole, Clara Gilbert, 1868-1956
Submitted by Battlescarred on Feb 16 2012 14:20
A short biography of Clara Gilbert Cole,anti-militarist and anarchist
"Clara Gilbert, with her unusual slender loveliness, her deft fingers and vivid imagination, was like a caged bird in the post office.” The Home Front, Sylvia Pankhurst
" A remarkable, sincere and much loved woman". John Hewetson
War and revolution: The Hungarian anarchist movement in WW1 and the Budapest commune 1919 - Martyn Everett
Submitted by flaneur on Jan 20 2012 10:33
Kate Sharpley Library pamphlet on the anarchist movement in Hungary and the workers control in Budapest.
You are encouraged to buy a hard copy here. Taken from The Bastard Archive.
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